B & L Plumbing Service

Michael C.

Don't say you weren't warned! Look at the other reviews here (including the ""not recommended"" section full of red-flag advice. Use these guys if you want to know what it feels like to have your home, dignity, and wallet violated by indifferent, price-gouging, possibly-criminal charlatans.

My home in Kansas City needed a waterline leak repair. The problem was not diagnosed correctly, the workers left the problem worse than it was before they arrived. They did not stand behind their lousy ""fix"", and wouldn't even return to look at the problem they had just failed to repair. You've been warned.

Jamie M.

I had all kinds of issues with these guys from being told I had 450 psi of water pressure, to them breaking my first installed hot water heater to being charged to have that water heater replaced. I did not get to chose this company, it was done so by a home warranty. I paid $850 for codes that I was told needed to be fixed (some where legit some where not) I was charged $200 to install a $40 piece of equipment $70 for a $12 permit and I was quoted $350 for a pressure reducing valve that I had another company replace for $150...I finally have hot water 16 days after my first phone call. I feel ripped off. If you have the choice I would not go with these guys.

Doris M.

Chris with B&L Plumbing came out to unclog a drain and fix the garbage disposal. He got the disposal working and the drain unclogged. He was very knowledgeable and explained what needed to be done. He completed the work in a timely manner and I would use them again.

Joe H.

Pathetic and uneducated. Had a tech come out due to a home warranty claim on a hot water heater.

Driver gets to the house and talks about the neighbor kid that ran out in front of him while chasing a dog (undeniably a rattling situation) and goes on to say he wanted to go to the neighbors house and punch whatever adult answered the door.... Are you kidding me?? How is that the way to handle the situation?

After that nonsense was put behind him he walked into the garage (location of leaking water heater) and within 2 minutes tells me it's not the water heater that's leaking. I tell him I'm confident that it is, in fact, the water heater that's leaking as I could watch it drip from underneath it. I instructed him he needed to actually kneel down and look underneath it instead of from the top and sure enough his response was ""well I'll be damned, it sure is leaking""....

After this he told me that he needed to call the home warranty people and suggest a fix. After 20 minutes of him being in his van on the phone he comes out to tell me that they don't make a unit the size mine is (48"" tank) and that it is out of code. Mind you, I bought this house in Nov 2015 and had a full inspection. He told me that a hot water heater needs to be 18"" off the ground in the garage and that no unit, even if they made the same size I currently have would fit and be in code.

I told him I had a hard time believing that it didn't meet code since the house was just inspected less than a year ago. His response was ""home inspectors will do anything, I'll explain when I get back from my van"" and he walked away.

Sometime while in the garage the home protection company called me and it went straight to voicemail, the tech said he couldn't do anything today and was needing to leave since I wasn't able to get a hold of the home protection company immediately. He left without ever explaining his statement on the home inspectors, without detailing what needs to be fixed, without telling me what my code infractions were, nearly without giving me my receipt for service and simply telling me my only option was to get an electric unit installed for $1,800.

The home protection company called me and just then was I informed about everything the tech said was wrong. The tech detailed that I didn't have a gas shutoff for the system, I do, and that the hot water heater needs to be 18"" off the ground in the garage, the 2015 Fuel Gas Code reads:

""G2408.2 (305.3) Elevation of Ignition Source.
Equipment and appliances having an ignition source shall be elevated such that the source of ignition is not less that 18 inches (457mm) above the floor in hazardous locations and public garages, private garages...
Exception: Elevation of the ignition source is not required for appliances that are listed as flammable-vapor-ignition resistant""

All hot water heaters produced after July 1, 2005 are flammable-vapor-ignition resistant. So both of those code ""violations"" were in fact, not violations and in compliance. Now, you may be wondering why on earth any of this matters if they don't make a hot water heater the same size as the one that I have? SURPRISE.... They do. As a matter of fact, it's made by the same company that made my current one, Kenmore. Both the Kenmore 57640 and 57940 are 47.75"" tall.

So, after all of this, my home protection company says that they cannot replace it because B&L says that it's not possible to replace it and abide by code... so I was up a creek, got a small ""cash-out"" from the home protection company and had to find my own means to install the hot water heater.

How can a ""certified"" plumber not know plumbing code and miss things so obvious that someone with no plumbing experience can find the same day (gas shut-off and code? It took literally 1 search to find the hot water heater that was the identical size to the one that I previously had. Will never do business with B&L plumbing again.

Samantha M.

I had service from B&L plumbing through an Old Republic warranty on Tuesday. On Friday, my sewer line, shower and sink were all backing up again. When I called, I was informed the technician said tree roots were the problem and as a result it's an uncovered service. That isn't remotely what he told me when he was at my house. The point here is not whether the service is covered. The point is a supposed professional came to my house, temporarily fixed the problem and left without telling me that it was merely a temporary fix, leaving my home vulnerable to the same problem again. I'm not a plumber. That's why I called for professional service. If you have an Old Republic warranty and are unfortunate enough to have B & L sent to your house to solve your problem, my advice would be don't even open the door when they show up. Get a different company; you'll save yourself a very nasty case of deja vu when you find your basement flooded again days later.

And I see below the company responded to another complaint ""this was a service call through a home warranty."" Who cares what the source was? The only thing that matters in my case is that B&L didn't fix the problem AND didn't tell me the problem wasn't fixed. That's no way to do business.

Brian F.

Update from my previous review and owner's response. They promised me a $50 refund from the extreme over charge that still hasn't shown up (doubt it will), but worth the $50 to me to save someone else from this disaster of a company. Apparently the owner doesn't know the entire truth of problem. The Tech was NOT at my house ""for almost 2 hours"", it was 1 hour and 7 minutes. My home warranty told me that they charged them more than what I paid. So lets recap. A minimum of $700 to install one a water heater and expansion tank. Adding up the costs of a few flexible hoses ($25), an expansion tank ($50) and some clamps ($10) with lets round 1.25 hours of labor = $700+. Don't let the owners review fool you. He's just trying to do damage control. I have repeatedly ask for an itemized list of charges that they won't give me. We never spoke to the Tech about what was included in the $350 estimate. We were told it was ""modifications"". As noted in my previous review, this was essentially $5 worth of materials. The warranty company paid for the labor to install the new water heater and the materials & labor to install the expansion tank. Warranty company shipped the new water heater. Bottom line, B&L Plumbing horrendously overcharged me for the ""modifications"". Called United Heating for an new water & expansion tank install estimate. United says they charge between $200-$250 for the entire job not just modifications.

John R.

I'll give them a three star mostly because they actually finished the job and did it in one work day. Customer service was ok. I had a complete exterior water line replacement which required them to burrow under my driveway, which I will say is a difficult job. I had the job done through a water line warranty service who hired B&L. Honestly the warranty service was super shady while talking to them and you can tell they try to get out of paying for anything. Both business are working together to get the most money they can and I honestly believe that B&L worked a deal with the insurance company so that the insurance company paid a little less and charged me just enough that I still had to say yes. They charged me $820 because there was a part of the line that was interior that needed to be replaced, which was not covered, but I don't think it should have cost that much. The worst part is neither company would give me any information about what the insurance companies share cost them. Some sort of ""contractual agreement"" to keep it secret, which makes it more shady. I still probably came out on top since the insurance was super cheap ($3.99/mo) and $820 is a hell of a deal for a complete replacement but still feel dirty dealing with both companies. Long story short I have two or three other plumbers I would have gone with if I had a choice. Plus B&L destroyed my yard and could have done a better job of replacing the dirt so it would settle more evenly.

Dave P.

Great, fast service. Jason quickly diagnosed the problem and took care of what a previous plumber couldn't fix (even though they said they did.) Customer service rep was very friendly and helpful, too. Highly recommended! Not sure about CC, but we paid with a check.

Jennifer H.

We have a home warranty and they sent out B & L Plumbing. The technician came out and ""upgraded"" the garbage disposal for an extra $200. He explained to my husband that it was the best. Everything was fine until I ran the dishwasher the very next morning. Either a hose was never connected or as they claim blew off bc of my faulty dishwasher. Our wood floors in our kitchen are completely warped now, water was everywhere in our basement and the dishwasher will not close correctly. We called immediately only to be told someone would call us back. When someone finally could make the time to call we were told someone would have to come look at it. Well today has been almost 2 months since then. They came this morning to tell my husband that since we weren't home and their person wasn't there, that there was no way to tell what happened. They claim that I possibly could have left food in the garbage disposal and that was the cause for the hose to blow off. They also told my husband that grease from food left in the disposal could do that too. It was a brand new unit with absolutely no way in 1 day to accumulate grease. They said our floors and basement were not their problem. I am well into my 40's and have owned several houses and have owned a rental house. NEVER have I had a company be so unresponsive and irresponsible before. I have never had anything like this happen with a new garage disposal and we have had several replaced by true professionals with absolutely no problems. The company was extremely hard to get someone to take care of matters. And the diverting of blame to the dishwasher is unacceptable. I would NEVER recommend them to anyone. I am a small business owner myself and I can tell you if I treated or acted in the manner that this company has I would have been out of business a long time ago.

Brandon K.

I had a similar experience with this company when dealing with a home warranty claim. The plumber tried to get more money by saying the expansion tank on a water heater was not code and asking for over $450 to replace it. When questioned about it and trying to get my deductible check back, he assaulted me by hitting me in the face in my driveway. Owner or representative called back and called me a liar and refused to speak to me after speaking to the police officer. I had two other plumbers out since and they both said that expansion tank was in code and if they did need to put one in the cost was around $175.00. Poor staff starts with bad manager.